Loggerhead sea turtles win new protection in Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico

Wednesday

Jul 9, 2014 at 11:41 PM

Across 685 miles of beaches from North Carolina to Mississippi, loggerhead sea turtles now swim in federally protected waters.

From staff and wire reports

WASHINGTON | Across 685 miles of beaches from North Carolina to Mississippi, loggerhead sea turtles now swim in federally protected waters.The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on Wednesday designated those coastlines, as well as 300,000 square miles in the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico, as a critical habitat for this endangered turtle species, the largest federal protection of its kind.The critical habitat designation includes 68 miles of coastline in Topsail Island, Lea-Hutaff Island, Pleasure Island, Bald Head Island, Oak Island and Holden Beach.Each area extends roughly 1 mile from shore, said Susan Pultz, a biologist with NOAA's Office of Protected Resources, speaking at a Sept. 9 public hearing in North Carolina.Already afforded several protections as an endangered species, the turtle is now further protected because the critical-habitat classification limits how federal agencies can use the region.Before shipping or building in a critical habitat, federal agencies must consult with NOAA and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to ensure that the project doesn't remove or mar the features necessary for the species' survival.Though the groups had hoped the critical habitat would include areas of the Pacific Ocean, NOAA fishery biologist Susan Pultz said loggerheads didn't populate that region enough to warrant the designation.Loggerhead turtles use 1,531 miles of beaches in the United States, yet some of the coastal areas included in the critical habitat aren't currently home to the species. Including these unoccupied areas is a prospective approach, said Amanda Keledjian, a marine biologist at Oceana, an ocean conservationist nonprofit organization.“They were included for the purposes of climate change and perhaps will become even more important in the future,” Keledjian said. “We're very excited that such a large area was designated. That's a big step for turtles.”Conservation groups had sued NOAA and the Fish and Wildlife Service last year when the federal environmental agencies didn't create a critical habitat for the loggerheads the year before. The agencies had been legally required to establish the region by 2012. The parties settled the lawsuit, which required the agencies to draft a proposal for the habitat last July and a finalized version Wednesday.The proposal for the critical habitat designation so concerned town officials in Caswell Beach and Oak Island that they hired a temporary lobbyist last year to make their views known.Costs associated with establishing the habitat may not take into account the cost to affected municipalities already bracing for federal funding cuts to dredging projects, local officials said during hearings last fall.Beach town officials concerned about potential changes to the permit process for dredging and beach nourishment also said replenished beaches are necessary for both local tourism and the health of the loggerheads.“Turtles need sand. If critical habitat is designated for loggerhead turtles, these existing, successful programs will be burdened with additional and unnecessary measures, and will become more costly and difficult to implement,” Caswell Beach Mayor Harry Simmons said at an Aug. 7 hearing on the designation plan.Brunswick County Commissioner Frank Williams told those at that hearing the designation could have a negative impact on tourism.Former Carolina Beach mayor Bob Lewis said with the relatively low nest density in North Carolina – 3.25 nests per mile, versus 24 to 120 for states farther south – the designation may not be necessary, given the volunteer groups dedicated to caring for loggerhead nests.The designation could help local tourism, Jody Smith, a former Carolina Beach Town councilwoman and president of the Pleasure Island Sea Turtle Project, said at the hearing.“Tourists love the turtles,” Smith said. “This could make them say, 'Carolina Beach cares enough about their beach to designate it a critical habitat.' ”There are more than 600 threatened or endangered species with critical habitats. These areas have environments that are naturally stocked with the elements necessary to preserve the species. Removing or marring those features is banned.Loggerhead turtles, which spend about 12 years in deep water and 23 closer to the coast, are the largest sea turtle species in the United States' Southeast region. The breed was designated as endangered in 1978.“They survive our oil spills, plastic pollution and fishing nets only to return to their natal beaches, which are now threatened by sea level rise,” said Jaclyn Lopez, staff attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, an endangered-species nonprofit organization. “Today's designation will maximize conservation efforts by protecting turtles on land and sea, offering hope for recovery.”